''Maratón'' (English title ''The Marathon'') is a 1968

Czechoslovak Czechoslovak may refer to: *A demonym or adjective pertaining to Czechoslovakia (1918–93) **First Czechoslovak Republic (1918–38) **Second Czechoslovak Republic (1938–39) **Third Czechoslovak Republic (1948–60) **Fourth Czechoslovak Repub ...

war film War film is a film genre concerned with warfare, typically about navy, naval, air force, air, or army, land battles, with combat scenes central to the drama. It has been strongly associated with the 20th century. The fateful nature of battle s ...

celebrating the liberation of

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army ( Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, afte ...

. The film was directed by Ivo Novák starring

Jaromír Hanzlík Jaromír Hanzlík (born 16 February 1948) is a Czech actor. Selected filmography Film * '' Coach to Vienna'' (1966) * '' Romance for Bugle'' (1967) * '' Maratón'' (1968) * ''Slasti Otce vlasti'' (1969) * '' The Joke'' (1969) * ''A Night at Ka ...

Jana Brejchová Jana Brejchová (born 20 January 1940) is a Czech film actress. She has appeared in more than 70 films since 1953. She was married to director Miloš Forman and later actor Vlastimil Brodský. Her younger sister Hana is also an actress who has ...

Karel Höger Karel Höger (17 June 1909 – 4 May 1977) was a Czechoslovakian film actor. He appeared in nearly 100 films between 1939 and 1977. Selected filmography * '' In the Still of the Night'' (1941) * '' Enchanted'' (1942) * '' Gabriela'' (1942) ...

and

Vladimír Menšík Vladimír Menšík (9 October 1929 – 29 May 1988) was a popular Czech actor and entertainer, born in Ivančice, Moravia, Czechoslovakia. Both comedian and serious actor, he created a wide range of lively fictional character, characters. He st ...

. The movie follows two separated storylines: In one, young Czech Ruda Střecha (

) is liberated from Pankrác gestapo prison at the beginning of the Prague uprising, 5 May 1945. He meets young servant-maid Karla (

) and together they try to escape from Prague surrounded by German troops but they are inevitably drawn into the fighting. The same day, Jarda Střecha (

) older brother of Ruda, who fights as the soldier of the 1st Czechoslovak Army Corps in Carpathian mountains hears about the uprising in Prague and is immediately transferred to

Saxony Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a landlocked state of ...

. As the prewar

truck driver A truck driver (commonly referred to as a trucker, teamster, or driver in the United States and Canada; a truckie in Australia and New Zealand; a HGV driver in the United Kingdom, Ireland and the European Union, a lorry driver, or driver in ...

he now becomes a guide to the

3rd Guards Tank Army The 3rd Guards Tank Army (russian: 3-я гвардейская танковая армия) was a tank army established by the Soviet Union's Red Army during World War II. The 3rd Tank Army was created in 1942 and fought in the southern areas of ...

of the general Rybalko (

) and witnesses the bravery and sacrifice of Soviet soldiers in their "race to Prague". The story culminates by the liberation of Prague on 9 May 1945.

References

External links

* 1968 films 1960s Czech-language films Czech resistance to Nazi occupation in film Czech war films Czech World War II films Czechoslovak World War II films 1960s Czech films Czech propaganda films Films scored by Zdeněk Liška {{1960s-CzechRepublic-film-stub